Regional

10:28 am

Sat April 27, 2013

Santa Fe Police Captain Under Investigation

A Santa Fe police captain is being accused of improperly allowing a seized truck to be released to a three-time drunken driving suspect who was a longtime acquaintance.

The New Mexican reports that Capt. Aric Wheeler is the focus of an internal affairs investigation.

Documents obtained by the newspaper say Wheeler reportedly allowed Carlos Carrillo to remove his Ford pickup truck from the city impound lot. The truck was seized under Santa Fe's DWI Forfeiture Program after Carrillo was arrested in early April on charges of aggravated DWI and an open container violation.

The condition for releasing the truck was that Carrillo install an ignition interlock device.

Assistant City Attorney Alfred Walker says Wheeler doesn't have the authority to approve the release of an impounded vehicle.